Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1887-07-06

good Satisfaction for feeding hogs ana
cattle. / think the Stowell sweet corn
will give more feed to the acre, however,
as the stalks are not so coarse and seem
more palatable, and many Of the STALKS
will bear two ears. Often when conyel.
lent to good market the ears may be
sold for enough to buy more good sound
corn than could be grown onrtwo acres,
and the stalks will be worth for the cat
tie more than enough to pay all the ex-.
penses Of growing, including ground
rent. Get the land in fine condition fer
Summer planting, and if there is not
abundant moisture step on the seed as
you drop each hill and press it in close
contact with the earth. Plant sweet
corn in rows three and half feet apart,
with hills two and half feet apart and
allow three stalks to the hill. This will
give nearly $4,000 plants to an acre,
and with rich land and good cultivation
you ought to get over 1000 dozen Of
marketable ears and the stalks from
each rod will feed two COWS day, 0,
the acre will feed ten COWS month. ]
have had crops of this size planted the
first week in July.
- ! PoTAToE ,sLUGs. s@<.- :.
Wherever potatoes are grown largely
farmers have learned to keep sharp
lookout for the first crop of slugs.
These hatch in two to three weeks after
the potatoes are up, according to the
weather. The mature beetles are in the
field by instinct about as soon as the
first green shoots appear and at once
begin laying their eggs. Sometime.
the bright yellow eggs are found on the
under side of thistle leaves when the
potatoes are slow to come up. In
such cases suppose the eggs have to
be laid somewhere, and the beetle can
90 no further in her search for a pota-
to or tomato plant. Generally when
young potato shoots begin to appear,
egg-laying also begins on them, with
enough bugs two weeks latter to strip
the plant in a single day. The leaves
of the potato at this early stage Of
growth are very tender and easily
burned. If too strong doses of Paris
green are used it will hurt the crop as
much as the potato bugs could do.
For this reason, as also from a dislike to
use Paris green except when absolutely
necessary, I have always been careful
to pick first beetles as soon as they ap-
pear. Sometimes this has been a pref
ty big job. have found ten to twenty
beetles on a single hill on early planted
potatoes in small garden patch.
After destroying these have gone over
the same rows an hour or two later and
found half as many more. But in large
fields they are never so numerous early
excepting around the fences and edges
of the field. Finally later in the season
I have sometimes used Paris green,
though with hand picking at first the
poison will not be needed.
KANSAS SORGHUM.
A Kansas farmer cut ten acres of
amber sorghum just as the heads APP
peared. When cured he had 874 tons
of dried fodder of the best qualit;;-
superior to prairie hay. The cutting
was done late in July. About Septem-
Der twenty-four cows were turned
into the field when the stubble had
started into growth and they found
good pasture for two months, until
heavy frost came. Cut early and cured
well, sorghum is an excellent milk
producing food. >.
WATER THE CHICKS.
If poultry are to be kept healthy, it
is essential that they have a good sup
ply of fresh water. 1t should be con-
venient, and where there is no rum
ming brood in the shade and often
renewed. made V shaped trough,
some three inches deep, with a float
or the water, not large enough to cover
all the surface. but so large that
chicken OF duckling could not fall in be-
tween the edge of the float and the
side of the trough. The float is held
by strip on the end, so that it can
not tip.